Will Celtic make a statement signing this January?

So far, the Hoops are yet to make any additions to the squad at Parkhead during this winter transfer window, despite the fact lesser-spotted squad members Stephen Welsh, Odin Thiago Holm and Alexandro Bernabei have all departed.

Nevertheless, Brendan Rodgers is certainly eager to add some firepower to his forward line, so can the Celts convince one of Europe’s most in-demand strikers to come to Glasgow?

Celtic targeting a new centre-forward

As reported by Mark Pirie of the Daily Record, Celtic could look at Brøndby striker Mathias Kvistgaarden again having ‘been on the agenda’ in recent transfer windows.

However, the Scottish Premiership champions face competition from Bundesliga side Eintracht Frankfurt who, according to a report by Florian Plettenberg of Sky Sports Deutschland, believe he could replace Omar Marmoush, who is on his way to Manchester City for a whopping £67m.

It is believed that Brøndby value Kvistgaarden at a mighty £11m, which would equal Celtic’s club-record transfer fee, spending the same amount to sign Arne Engles on deadline day last summer.

So would he be worth it?

Transfer Focus

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What Mathias Kvistgaarden would bring to Celtic

Described as a “clinical, complete striker” by one onlooker, he certainly fits that fill considering the 22-year-old has scored 38 goals in 110 appearances for Brøndby, including 14 already this season, most recently notably bagging a hat-trick against Midtjylland during a thumping 5-1 victory in Herning.

Jan Witting Wen on BlueSky notes that Kvistgaarden has achieved the unique feat of scoring against every single different opponent he’s faced in the Danish Superligaen, appearing likely to leave Brøndbyvester this month, but could Glasgow be his destination?

Celtic supporters have been blessed to enjoy some top-class strikers over the last decade: Odsonne Édouard, Moussa Dembélé and Giorgos Giakoumakis to name a few who’ve come and gone.

Current striker Kyōgo Furuhashi isn’t bad either, bagging 85 goals in just 164 appearances in hoops, but the Japan international has been linked with a move away this month.

Major League Soccer were forced to apologise after accidentally announcing that Kyōgo had joined Atlanta United, when in fact it was his compatriot Cayman Togashi who’d moved to the Five Stripes, with the league’s statement saying “MLS extends its sincere apologies to the impacted parties”.

Nevertheless, given that the striker is now 30, if a big offer was on the table, it might be tough for the Hoops to turn down, so let’s see how Kyōgo and Kvistgaarden compare.

Appearances

50

81

Minutes

3,215

5,296

Goals

0.67

0.53

Assists

0.34

0.15

Shots per 90

2.89

3.55

Shots on target %

54.9%

43.2%

Dribble success %

61.9%

50%

Average SofaScore rating

7.31

6.76

In terms of pure statistics, the “very exciting prospect” – as described by one Danish scout – Kvistgaarden has been more impressive than Kyōgo since the start of last season, scoring more goals per 90, registering more assists and finding the target with more shots.

According to FotMob, Kyōgo has missed 17 big chances this season, at least five more than anyone else in the Premiership, despite being the division’s joint-top scorer, alongside Sam Dalby.

So, there surely isn’t a Celtic fan on the planet that doesn’t think that Kyōgo is a good player, with Ryan McDonald labelling him the club’s best striker since Henrik Larsson, which is high praise, but Kvistgaarden is undoubtedly a top-talent so, if Rodgers can convince him to sign, the club must do everything in their power to secure the Danish forward’s signature.

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1 ByDan Emery